"Just shut up!" - When former France star took shots at Cristiano Ronaldo for his cheeky dig at Lionel Messi
Earlier this year, Frank Leboeuf took shots at Cristiano Ronaldo for his comments on Ligue1. The pundit believes that the Portuguese star is only doing it to take digs at Lionel Messi.
Speaking to BetVictor earlier this year, Leboeuf stated that Ronaldo namedropped Ligue1 because Messi played there with Paris Saint-Germain (PSG). The pundit added that he has respect for the Portuguese star as a player, but slammed Ronaldo for his comments on Ligue 1.
"It annoys me when I hear Cristiano Ronaldo saying that the Saudi Pro League is better than Ligue 1," Leboeuf said. "Why do you think he chose to make that comment about Ligue 1 rather than the Portuguese League? It's because Lionel Messi played in Ligue 1. I have lots of respect for him as a player but come on, just shut up! It is unfair to Ligue 1."
The pundit went on to take digs at the Portuguese forward and claimed that his national side are going to suffer every time he plays. He said:
"For me, Portugal are actually one of the contenders for this summer's European Championships. I actually think they can win the Euros, but only if Cristiano Ronaldo doesn't play. You cannot take away anything that Ronaldo has done for football just because he has gone to retire in the Saudi League. I want to thank him for taking the sport to another level, but there is an end for everyone. He has every right to play in Saudi Arabia, although I'm not sure he needed even more money!"
Portugal were knocked out of EURO 2024 in the quarterfinals this summer. Ronaldo finished the tournament with no goals to his name in normal time.
What did Cristiano Ronaldo say about Ligue1?
Cristiano Ronaldo spoke about Ligue1 and stated that the Saudi Pro League side was not worse. He added that the Middle Eastern league is more competitive and said via Mirror:
"To be honest I think the Saudi League is not worse than French league, in my opinion. In [the] French league I think you have two, three teams with a good level. In Saudi now I think it's more competitive. I think right now we are better than [the] French league, we still improve."
Cristiano Ronaldo is still at Al Nassr and is expected to sign a new deal at the club. Lionel Messi moved to Inter Miami in the MLS after his two years at PSG.